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London Knights, Medicine Hat Tigers, Rimouski Oceanic, and Moncton Wildcats (The Hockey Writers)

Memorial Cup Day 3: Elliott & Knights Outlast Oceanic For 3-1 Victory

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Jordan Orth | Last updated May 26, 2025 9:35 AM ET

In a big matchup in the 2025 Memorial Cup, the London Knights (Ontario Hockey League) and the hosts, Rimouski Oceanic (Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League), locked horns for the first time in 20 years (London beat Rimouski 4-0 in the 2005 Memorial Cup Finals). The Knights pulled out a thrilling 3-1 victory in a tightly contested and hard-fought game.

Physicality & Intensity at a High

Heading into the game, both teams had been known to play a physical brand of hockey, and the matchup between them was no different. The physicality from both teams started right from the opening faceoff and set the tone for the full 60 minutes. The intensity of the game was felt right from the start as well. With a fast pace to the game, and both teams playing strong and relentlessly on the forecheck, the room for error was small.

That said, the overall flow and intensity were everything expected to be seen in a big-time postseason game.

Goaltending Battle Goes to Elliott

On the second night of back-to-backs for the Knights, goaltender Austin Elliott was in a battle with his counterpart, Mathis Langevin. Both netminders played at the top of their games for their respective teams and made the game’s intensity even higher. Each team had plenty of high-danger chances, getting to the middle of the ice and point-blank range for chances on the opposing team’s netminders. For most of the game, both Elliott and Langevin stood tall and made several key saves to keep it deadlocked until the Knights broke a 1-1 tie with around five minutes left.

In the win for the Knights, Elliott played large in the net, stopping 28 of the 29 shots he faced. Langevin was a bit busier and stopped 33 of the 35 shots he faced in the loss for the Oceanic.

Hunter Makes History

Head coach Dale Hunter made Canadian Hockey League (CHL) history with the Knights’ victory. With the win, he became the winningest head coach in Memorial Cup history with his 15th win in the tournament. When asked about it after the game, Hunter said, “It’s a credit to the players here… To win games, they are the ones who have to sacrifice on the ice to block shots. Through the years, I’ve had great players and winners…”

Hunter has been with the Knights organization since the 2001-02 season (outside of a short-term jump to the NHL to coach the Washington Capitals during the 2011-12 season). He has surpassed 1,000 wins as the lead man behind the Knights’ bench (he is the second CHL coach of all time to do so). The Knights have won two Memorial Cups, in 2005 and 2016.

Hunter and the Knights will look to add on to his 15 wins as they continue to work toward their first Memorial Cup tournament win in almost ten years.

Other Game Notes

What’s Next

The Knights, moving to 2-0 in round robin play, now find themselves in a strong position at the top of the standings (for now). They are off until they take on the Western Hockey League (WHL) champions, the Medicine Hat Tigers, on May 27. The Oceanic will have to pull out a victory over their QMJHL counterpart, the Moncton Wildcats, on May 28. After a thrilling six-game series to determine the QMJHL Champions between the two teams, this matchup should bring some fireworks and excitement.